Overview
Based on the findings of this review, the Family Spending in the UK statistics, which are sourced from the Living Costs and Food Survey (LCF), can continue to be published as accredited official statistics.
This report provides our view on whether the statistics included in the Family Spending in the UK publication continue to meet the standards set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics.
Back to topWhy we did this review
We previously set out our intention to undertake further regulatory work on response issues impacting household surveys. Following our review of Household total wealth in Great Britain – the latest statistics from the Wealth and Assets Survey – we have reviewed the Family Spending bulletin that uses data from the LCF.
For this review, we have considered:
- how declining response rates may have affected the quality of survey data, any resulting impact on potential biases and any further actions needed to improve data quality
- the clarity of communication with users around ongoing data quality concerns
- the extent to which these statistics meet user need
Highlighted findings
The LCF has experienced a long-term decline in response rates, which were also significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Users reported that smaller achieved sample sizes have made analyses more volatile, leading to the need to combine data across two or more years to support statistical precision.
In response to user demand, ONS increased the LCF sample in April 2024, and will continue investing in LCF improvements, subject to funding and the conclusion of current business planning processes. ONS has made initial steps to increase the resources available to the data production and analysis team, which should mean that other quality issues, such as timeliness, should be improved. Innovations such as modernised processing infrastructure, a digital interviewer-facing diary and receipt-reading tools are being developed to improve data accuracy and reduce the processing burden within the LCF data collection environment.
Users expressed concern over delays in the data publication, with data from 2022/2023 released approximately 18 months after the close of the survey period, compared to the usual 12 months. To counter this, ONS is working to automate data processing and improve access to microdata, aiming to deliver the Family Spending outputs closer to the target of one year of survey completion, by 2026, and within one year by 2027.
Our judgement
While there have been growing issues around achieved sample size and timeliness, considering the positive user feedback, and the current and planned improvements to the survey, these statistics remain of sufficient value and quality to meet users’ needs.
These factors mean that these statistics continue to comply with the Code of Practice for Statistics.
As well as requiring that ONS follow through and report on the improvements in its Economics Statistics Plan (ESP) and its Survey Improvement and Enhancement Plan (SIEP), we have three detailed recommendations to further meet users’ needs. These focus on further engagement with users to understand their needs, being clear about how ONS can speed up the publication timetable and providing more information about survey representativeness and comparability.
Back to topNext steps
We expect ONS to report on its progress against our recommendations for improvement from this compliance review by April 2026.
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